Money shouts, but wealth whispers…

The barber and the Big Mac

My barbershop is far from being the fanciest, and it is precisely why it is so great.

Everyday men and women of all ages, professions and origins gather together there for some always animated discussions that can get pretty heated as the beer start pouring at the end of the afternoon.

So yesterday I pay my monthly visit to the place and find myself caught in the middle of a that argument that the next guy in line started with the following phrase:
-“The Euro is way stronger than the Swiss Franc!”
To which the barber replied:
-“How can you say something so stupid?”
– Because, a Euro is worth more! Look you need 1.20 Swisss francs to have a single Euro… So the latter is stronger!”
The client’s haircut is finished, and it’s time for him to pay but he has no change and decides to go get change at a nearby fast food. He comes back a few minutes later with the cash and sits in the sofa to have some food he bought, while chatting about who is going to win tonight’s partita di calcio.

But my barber interrupts him and asks:
-“That disgusting thing you’re having, how much did you pay for it?”
-“12 francs”
-“So it makes what, half an hour of your salary, right?”
-“Yeah, that’s about it”
-“Now back home, how much does that cost?”
-“Around 7 Euros maybe”
-“And how much does the average Italian makes in a month?”
-“Like 350 a week”
-“So you’d have to work like a full hour to get one?”
-“Yeah, I guess….”
-“Hence, the CHF is twice as strong as the Euro!”

I don’t know if my barber has ever heard of the Big Mac index (which by the way is far from perfect), but this was a funny way to get back at the guy, whom I never liked anyway as he supports Inter F.C.